Security-enhanced OFDM-PON with two-level coordinated encryption strategy at the bit-level and symbol-level

Area of Science:

• Optical Network Security
• Physical Layer Security
• Cryptography

Background:

• Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing passive optical networks (OFDM-PON) require robust security measures.
• Existing encryption methods may be vulnerable to sophisticated cyberattacks.
• Physical layer security is crucial for protecting data transmission in optical networks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a novel, security-enhanced scheme for OFDM-PON systems.
• To combine bit-level deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) encoding encryption with symbol-level matrix scrambling.
• To enhance robustness against malicious attacks and ensure physical layer security.

Main Methods:

• Developed an improved DNA encoding encryption with dynamic key base series and cross interchange.
• Implemented matrix scrambling on non-equal-length quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) matrices with random scrambling times.
• Validated the scheme in an 8 Gb/s 16QAM OFDM-PON system over 25-km standard single-mode fiber (SSMF).

Main Results:

• Achieved a multi-fold encryption key space of up to 10^154, ensuring high security.
• Demonstrated effective protection against violent and differential attacks.
• Experimental results confirmed the scheme's ability to secure data transmission.

Conclusions:

• The proposed two-level coordinated encryption scheme significantly enhances OFDM-PON security.
• The combination of DNA encoding and matrix scrambling provides robust protection at the physical layer.
• This novel approach offers a viable solution for securing high-speed optical communication systems.